Maintaining the Dignity of the Female Supporting Character - Chapter 3

When Wen Bingyi arrived home, Wen Shuangmu had just finished showering, with her wound covered in plastic wrap.

She sat on the bed, holding the hem of her shirt between her chin and collarbone, applying ointment to the bruises on her waist and abdomen.

Wen Bingyi never knocked when entering her room.

As the doorknob turned from the outside, Wen Shuangmu irritably dropped her shirt hem, about to scold him, when she heard Wen Bingyi pinch his nose and say, “Sis, your room stinks.”

The ointment had a pungent smell. Wen Shuangmu hadn’t finished applying it, but after his interruption, she couldn’t be bothered to continue. She screwed the cap back on, saying, “Then get out.”

Wen Bingyi was taken aback by Wen Shuangmu’s sour face. The teasing words he had planned to say died on his lips.

He rolled his eyes and moved closer to the bed, asking, “Sis, what are you putting on?”

“Nothing,” Wen Shuangmu replied. She had changed into a loose gray long-sleeved shirt after her shower. The bulge of the bandaged wound was barely visible beneath the sleeve.

Seeing that he hadn’t noticed, Wen Shuangmu didn’t elaborate. She stuffed the ointment and anti-inflammatory medication into her bedside drawer, then pulled out a manga from her simple bookshelf and lay down to read.

Wen Bingyi’s eyes widened as he thought for a while before asking, “Sis, do you want some ice cream? I can go get you some.”

Wen Shuangmu: “No.”

“How about cookies or snacks?”

Wen Shuangmu found Wen Bingyi’s behavior a bit strange. She had never noticed him being so attentive before. “I don’t want to eat anything. Can you please be quiet and talk less?”

“Oh.” Wen Bingyi shut his mouth and sat next to her, following along as she read the manga.

Sun Shuqin, the Wen family’s housekeeper, knocked on the door from outside. She had picked up Wen Bingyi from his after-school activities, and they had returned home together. “Shuangmu, do you want to call your parents? It’s getting late. Are you still going out to eat? Otherwise, I can make dinner for you and Bingyi.”

Mr. Wen and Mrs. Han had mentioned that morning before leaving that they would take Wen Shuangmu to a new themed restaurant for a nice meal after her class placement exam.

Wen Shuangmu said, “It’s fine, Auntie. You can go ahead and leave. My parents will probably be back later.”

Sun Shuqin replied, “Then I’ll wash some fruit for you. You can have it if you get hungry.”

Wen Shuangmu responded with a “Okay” and got up to search for her phone in her schoolbag.

Her first call to Han Chuqiu went unanswered. After Sun Shuqin left and she and Wen Bingyi went to the living room to eat fruit, the other side called back.

“Shuangmu, I heard from Old Chen that you were hit by a car this morning? How’s the wound? Does it still hurt? Mama was too busy today and didn’t see your messages. I’ll have Dr. Shao come by the house later to check on you again.”

Wen Shuangmu felt it wasn’t necessary to make such a fuss: “No need, Uncle Chen already took me for a check-up.”

The voice on the other end was noisy. Han Chuqiu seemed to say something to her secretary before bringing the phone back to her ear: “Mama has to go on a sudden business trip to Hong Kong. My flight is at 8 pm, so I probably won’t have time to come home first. Has Sun Shuqin left? If you want to eat something, ask her to cook for you, or you can take your brother out to eat. I’ll transfer you some money.”

Han Chuqiu was the boss of an advertising company. She had built it from obscurity into a large, publicly listed corporation with her own hands. Wen Shuangmu was used to her frequent business trips. “Oh, okay. What about Dad? Is he not coming home tonight either?”

“He is, but it might be quite late.” Han Chuqiu seemed to feel a bit guilty about both parents being absent. “He has to entertain an important client at the hotel tonight, and probably can’t get out of the dinner… We’re sorry about this, Shuangmu. We’ll make it up to you in a couple of days.”

Wen Shuangmu didn’t take it to heart. In her previous life, when she had been in a car accident and sent to the hospital, Mr. Wen and Han Chuqiu had rushed over immediately. It was a minor injury, but because she missed the class placement exam, she had been in a bad mood all day, exhausting Mr. Wen and Han Chuqiu as they stayed by her side to comfort her.

She remembered their phones ringing non-stop that day. She knew they had probably put off some work matters because of her, but since they both hid it from her, she pretended not to know and continued to be in a foul mood.

This time, she had successfully taken the exam, but her chances of passing were only about 70%. If they celebrated early and then she didn’t pass, it would be quite awkward.

Wen Shuangmu said, “It’s fine, you go ahead with your work.”

On the other end, Han Chuqiu was called away again. Before hurriedly hanging up, she said to Wen Shuangmu, “If there’s any gift you want, send Mama a WeChat message. I’ll bring it back for you later.”

Wen Shuangmu deliberately ignored the “you” that included Wen Bingyi. She had a habit of making shopping lists since she was young. With her “mental age” increased, her aesthetic tastes had changed slightly. She picked through her notes, took a long screenshot, and sent it to Han Chuqiu. Then she kicked the nearby sofa and said to Wen Bingyi, “Let’s go out to eat.”

When Wen Bingyi heard Wen Shuangmu’s “you go ahead with your work” earlier, he knew their parents wouldn’t be coming home tonight.

He stuffed the rest of his half-eaten tangerine into his mouth, went to the entryway to change his shoes, and asked Wen Shuangmu what they were going to eat.

Wen Shuangmu put on a thoughtful expression: “Didn’t you say you wanted to eat burgers a couple of days ago? Come on, let’s go while Mom and Dad aren’t around. I’ll treat you.”

Wen Bingyi couldn’t tell if he was the one who had forgotten or if it was Wen Shuangmu who had. He said, “You’re eating junk food?”

“Hmm?” Wen Shuangmu ignored his protest. “If you don’t like it, we can each eat our own thing.”

Wen Bingyi: “…”

Summer days were long. At 6:30 pm, the sky hadn’t completely darkened yet, still a clear, misty blue.

Wen Bingyi wore his little deck shoes, avoiding the flat road and specifically stepping on the tactile paving or the small stone steps along the landscaped areas.

Wen Shuangmu followed behind at a leisurely pace.

The Royal New River Bay Residence was built in the prime area of the city center, less than 100 meters from the CBD, frequented by luxury cars and the elite.

Wen Shuangmu looked at the surrounding landscaped scenery, feeling somewhat confused. She had grown up in an affluent family, with parents who, despite being busy with their careers, never neglected to participate in their children’s upbringing. Coming from such a background, she had merely steadfastly pursued what she wanted. Why did this make her appear as a villain in others’ eyes?

Wu Xiaoqi, fearing it might affect the host’s mood, didn’t tell her that her pampered, self-perceived perfect personality was being criticized thousands of times daily in the novel’s comment section. Instead, it gave an official answer: “The mainstream of school novels is about mutual redemption. A child from a perfect original family would make it difficult to drive the plot forward.”

Wen Shuangmu felt this explanation was full of holes: “Su Qiyan’s parents didn’t mistreat him either, why does he need redemption?”

Wu Xiaoqi: “Xia Zhili’s greatest redemption for Su Qiyan is melting the ice. In the novel’s description, Su Qiyan is stern-faced even with his family members.”

That’s right. He didn’t smile at her either.

Wu Xiaoqi said: “Host, don’t be discouraged. The rebirth plot isn’t bound by space-time constraints. In the original book, you were able to refuse the author’s attempts to write you off several times, stubbornly increasing your presence. This life can only get better, not worse.”

Wen Shuangmu: “…”

She seemed to feel a tiny bit comforted.

Wen Shuangmu took Wen Bingyi to a Mexican restaurant. She wasn’t particularly interested in puffed foods, but earlier in the day, she had suddenly craved fries after seeing someone else eating them.

Wen Bingyi ordered a set meal. Halfway through eating, he ran into a classmate from his after-school activities who was dining with their parents. He went off to play on the slides in the children’s area.

Wen Shuangmu verbally cautioned him to “be careful,” but was actually glad Wen Bingyi had gone away, giving her some peace and quiet.

She had chosen a table facing the entrance. Biting on a french fry, she began observing the flow of people coming in and out through the glass doors.

Wu Xiaoqi: “What is the host looking for?”

Wen Shuangmu: “A potential love interest.”

Wu Xiaoqi was surprised by Wen Shuangmu’s casual attitude in answering, and highly doubted that such a blind search could lead to finding any reliable partner.

It hesitated for a moment before deciding to offer a friendly suggestion: “Based on my observations this afternoon, you don’t need to look for anyone else. Your brother would do.”

“Him?” Wen Shuangmu was shocked, her gaze swiveling towards the play area.

Every time she saw Wen Bingyi’s face break into an uncontrolled smile, Wen Shuangmu wanted to sigh and say how simple a boy’s happiness was.

This was also why she felt Su Qiyan was special and different from other boys.

Wu Xiaoqi’s analysis was logical: “You came from the same womb, so there won’t be any mistakes in the villain genes. Combining various details, he would be a potential stock with a good overall score.”

Wen Shuangmu reminded it: “…He’s only eight years old.”

Wu Xiaoqi thought the host was going to accuse the system of corrupting minors, but in the next second, Wen Shuangmu said, “The mission period you gave me is only three years. After three years, he’ll be at most eleven years old. How can he possibly become a villain?”

Wu Xiaoqi: “The host has a point. It’s the system’s algorithm that wasn’t rigorous enough.”

Wen Shuangmu turned back to survey the entrance when she heard a commotion from the play area.

A classmate had been pushed to the ground by Wen Bingyi and was crying loudly. Wen Bingyi not only didn’t apologize but justified himself righteously: “I told you I was playing first, and you insisted on fighting me for it!”

Seeing the other parent already noticing the disturbance and getting up, Wen Shuangmu hurriedly walked over.

Wen Shuangmu rarely played the role of educating Wen Bingyi at home. Seeing the little classmate crying sadly on the ground, she turned to scold, “Wen Bingyi, what’s wrong with you? How could you push your classmate?”

Wen Bingyi protested, “He pushed me first!”

Wen Shuangmu wasn’t blind: “What pushing? When everyone plays together, you should take turns. You’ve monopolized the slide. Do you think other children don’t want to play?”

“I just want to play alone,” Wen Bingyi yelled. “If not, rent the whole place for me.”

Wen Shuangmu gave him a light smack on the head: “Who rents out an entire playground just to play on a slide?”

“You did,” Wen Bingyi cried out. “Grandma said that on your tenth birthday, Dad rented an entire amusement park for two days just for you to play alone. Why can’t I do the same?”

Wen Shuangmu seemed to suddenly recall this incident. Feeling the gaze of the other parent, she couldn’t lift her head in embarrassment: “Well, you’re only eight now, aren’t you? You’ve got two more years to go. Hold it in and apologize first!”

Under Wen Shuangmu’s pressure, Wen Bingyi reluctantly said sorry.

The classmate’s parent smiled, “It’s okay. It’s normal for kids to roughhouse a bit.”

Wen Shuangmu led Wen Bingyi back to their table. Seeing they had finished eating, she decided to pay the bill and leave.

Outside the restaurant, Wen Bingyi was still fuming: “I’m never playing with Qi Yu in our interest classes again. He never lets me have my way!”

Wu Xiaoqi couldn’t help but remark: “Actually, your brother has quite a lot of potential.”

Wen Shuangmu glanced at Wen Bingyi’s gleeful face and shook her head: “I don’t think so.”

When Wen Hong called Wen Shuangmu, she was accompanying Wen Bingyi to buy toys at the supermarket to make amends.

She emphasized to Wen Bingyi that she wouldn’t pay for him, but when Wen Bingyi said he had his own money, Wen Shuangmu stopped interfering and let him be.

Wu Xiaoqi felt a bit suffocated by this perfunctory “since you won’t listen, do as you please” style of parenting: “Is it really okay to raise a child like this?”

Wen Shuangmu didn’t think much of it: “Eight-year-olds are the most annoying. Doesn’t everyone raise kids this way?”

Probably because that’s how you were raised, Wu Xiaoqi thought, holding back the second half of the sentence. It now strongly recommended that the host bind Wen Bingyi as a cultivation target. Perhaps without even needing to be strategized, Wen Bingyi could naturally grow into a second-generation Wen Shuangmu, possessing the appearance of a villain.

Wen Hong’s evening dinner ended half an hour early. He called to ask where Wen Shuangmu and her brother were, saying he had brought some premium sashimi freshly air-freighted from Japan, and would also deliver a box to the Su family.

When Wen’s father met Su’s father, they soon started sipping some liquor and chatting.

Wen Shuangmu and Wen Bingyi sat on the living room sofa, one watching TV, the other playing with his newly bought toy.

Su Qiyan’s room door was tightly shut. It wasn’t clear if he thought the two families were too familiar to need his hospitality, or if he just hated wasting time on people and things he didn’t care about.

Su’s Mother brought over a freshly cut fruit platter: “Shuangmu, if you’re bored, you can go in and play with Xiaoqi.”

“Mm, thank you, Auntie,” Wen Shuangmu responded, but remained seated.

She pushed the fruit platter towards Wen Bingyi and prodded him: “Go bring some fruit to your Brother Qiyan.”

Wen Bingyi looked at her: “I want to eat too.”

Wen Shuangmu thought, how troublesome: “Then scoop out half for yourself.”

Wen Bingyi seemed to have a big objection. His mouth twitched for two minutes before he jumped off the sofa, mumbling: “Why don’t you go?”

He stuffed a big piece of watermelon into his mouth, scooped half into another plastic bowl, and then carried the rest to knock on the door.

The bedroom door opened from inside. Wen Shuangmu only caught a glimpse of half of the person’s shirt on the right shoulder. When she tried to see his face, he had already retreated from the doorframe.

Wen Bingyi followed Su Qiyan to the desk.

He put the fruit platter on the table and suddenly complained: “I bet Wen Shuangmu bombed her exam today.”

Su Qiyan was still thinking about the half-finished problem he had been solving and didn’t quite react: “Hm?”

“She’s been ignoring me all afternoon and even scolded me at dinner.”

Wen Bingyi didn’t mention that he was scolded for bullying a classmate at the restaurant.

“Mm.” The same syllable, but this time the ending tone was firmer, dropping a bit lower.

Su Qiyan was accustomed to maintaining distance in his interactions with others. For this kind of private information that others might not want him to know, he didn’t have the habit of inquiring further, and the topic ended there.

Wen Bingyi, having nothing else to do, insisted on saying something more, so he mysteriously leaned closer to Su Qiyan: “Brother, I’ll tell you a secret.”

Su Qiyan said, “Go ahead.”